English would bring sheriff's office forward

Amy English has plans for the Perry County Sheriff's Office. She has created short-term and long-term goals to move the office forward, and we think she will aggressively look to reach those goals for the betterment of the community. This is why the Times Recorder is endorsing her for the office of sheriff.

Currently the police chief in Junction City, English is a 13-year law enforcement veteran, including previously working for the Perry County Sheriff's Office. She has degrees in political science and police corrections, along with a bachelor's degree in criminal justice with a minor in sociology.

Two of her priorities, if she's elected, are to work on time and money management in the department. She has reviewed finances of the department and understands the staffing situation. However, she finds it unacceptable that the county has only one road deputy on the night shift.

Her plan is to reallocate deputies to provide better coverage. This also would incorporate the use of auxiliary and part-time deputies. English thinks this would deter property crimes, which are the biggest issue in the county. She'd also like future deputies to have more experience and education, at least an associate's degree, to ensure deputies are doing their jobs correctly, which, in turn, benefits the community.

She isn't taking herself out of the equation. While she recognizes that, as sheriff, administrative duties within the office are expected and needed, she also wants to make sure she is assigned to road duties. She said wouldn't expect her deputies to do things that she wouldn't be willing to do.

Being out of the office also would provide her time to connect with the public on a one-on-one basis so she could find out their concerns. She wants to make use of a website and social media such as Facebook to keep that connection going and better inform the public.

A long-term goal for English would be to build a new eight-day holding jail in the community. Currently, inmates can be detained only overnight then transported to Nelsonville. This pulls a deputy from road patrol to transport an inmate, and the county spends about $3 million per year housing inmates at the Southeastern Ohio Regional Jail - money that could remain in Perry County.

Sheriff Randy Barker refused to speak to the editorial board, nor did he consent to an interview with a reporter, so we do not know what plans he has for the office, if re-elected.

English also recently answered questions about her performance on the job while at the Perry County Sheriff's Office, which were brought up by an email sent to various media outlets, including the Times Recorder. It brought up past issues, including an arrest for impersonating an officer when she was an officer and disciplinary actions against her. She didn't shy away from the answering any of the questions and said she has learned lessons from all her experiences.

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English would bring sheriff's office forward

Amy English has plans for the Perry County Sheriff's Office. She has created short-term and long-term goals to move the office forward, and we think she will aggressively look to reach those goals